For many youths, that dream is fast diminishing after years of being unemployed and Abdul Mumin Dabone, a University of Ghana Political Science graduate, is no different.
Abdul Mumin has struggled to find work after he graduated from the University in 2021.
The graduate started work as a mechanic in March this year following difficulty in getting a fulfilling job after completing his mandatory 1-year national service.
Narrating his story of hustling in life, Mumin said he got a few opportunities to keep him busy though they were all not satisfying, and hated to be idle.
Read Abdul Mumin Dabone’s account below:
From being a Political Science student to being a mechanic.
I am Luqman Abdul Mumin Dabone. A graduate of the University of Ghana with a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science. I graduated from the University in 2021 and since then, life has been a series of events till I officially started as an automotive mechanic on Monday, 20th March 2023. This is how it all began and I hope you will be inspired to make a change in your life as well.
Life wasn’t easy after National service, and the man wanted to jump on every opportunity we got to make ourselves useful. Luckily, I got a few opportunities to keep me busy though they were all not satisfying.
I hated to be idle and to be at home. Being at home made me too comfortable and lazy to explore more options. But the question has always been, how did you arrive at being a mechanic? I hope this simplifies it.
Two things were considered in making this decision. Learning a skill and chasing my passion.
I found myself in deep thought for days and had sleepless nights. I had a lot going on in my mind especially being an ambitious person I was really obsessed about being successful. The question I kept asking myself during those hard moments of thought was, “Where do I really want to find myself in the next 5 years?”. I really wanted to be brutally honest with myself and not just about making a decision to suit the current trend. It was really hard and I cried sometimes when I felt helpless. As Muslim as I could be, I surrendered everything to Allah and kept praying and hoping for a way out.
I sat down to observe the trend of the successful paths in this generation and all I could hear in my mind was, “Learn a skill, just learn a skill”. It kept resounding in my mind and I felt definitely I could begin from there. Deciding on the skill became the biggest challenge. I tried soft skills and realized I didn’t really have the drive and enthusiasm to learn the IT skills I selected. I did all I could but realized it wasn’t working out. I turned my attention to hard skills and began to think of where exactly I should start. Quickly, I remembered I had a lingering passion for mechanics. In numerous conversations with friends I had mentioned to them that if I ever had a chance to learn a skill, it would be automotive mechanics.
Fast forward, I quit my job as a secretary in a construction company to chase my passion. I sat down with my family and we all agreed on my next career direction. Alhamdulillah!, To date, I haven’t found happiness in anything I have done in my entire life like I find in holding wrenches. I find so much joy every morning when I realize I am doing what I love best. I dance around, I sing, I laugh and share jokes with my colleagues and it’s always a happy moment here.
Now to you the reader:
Chase your passion and be consistent.
Make that life-changing decision today to do what you love to do.
Learn a skill no matter the field you find yourself.
Don’t ever feel those you started with are far ahead, success is like the sky, everyone will have a space up there. Make sure you are doing what you enjoy best.
At least if I die today, I died doing what I love
